Pizza Hotel: Pepe in Grani, Caiazzo, Italy

Franco Pepe and his pizzeria, Pepe in Grani, are widely considered the pizza G.O.A.Ts. We spent enough time visiting the top pizzas in Europe to know that most pizzaiolos are inspired by his pies.

Pepe in Grani is located outside of Naples, Italy, in a small town called Caiazzo. Like most towns in Italy, they have a train station, making it easy to visit during our week in Napoli.

They also have two rooms you can stay in above the restaurant! Yes, you can actually stay the night in an award-winning pizza restaurant. And if you stay there, you are guaranteed a reservation for dinner! If you know anything about me and The Husband, you’ll know this is basically our dream come true.

So we packed a bag and left our Napoli palace for a night to stay in the charming town of Caiazzo. We walked to the Naples train station and hopped on the regional train that would take us to Caiazzo without any transfers.

In Caiazzo, we walked the short, but uphill, walk to Pepe in Grani. Caiazzo is the quintessential charming Italian town, with narrow streets, lovely buildings, and gorgeous views.

One of the best parts about staying overnight at Pepe in Grani is being in the restaurant when it’s closed. We arrived before they opened for dinner service to check in, and it was just us and the very friendly staff. They welcomed us, brought us up to our room, and handed us the keys to the restaurant! In addition to your room key, you get a key to the front door so you can come and go after they close!

The room was well designed and comfortable. It had everything you could need, including bottles of water and coffee. It was honestly nicer than a lot of big-box hotels we stayed in. According to a pizza show we watched, there’s a room in between the two rooms that is by invitation only and has a second pizza oven where Franco essentially does a chef’s table meal. We didn’t get an invitation this time but hopefully next time (hint hint).

Reservations are absolutely recommended but if you didn’t make one and can’t stay the night, they do allow walk ins if space allows. We went on a Wednesday in November and there was a line outside by 5:30 pm, despite not opening until 6:30.

Pro tip: Book a room if you can’t make a reservation! On a Wednesday in November, it was only €100 for the night!

Now, on to the best part, dinner. We ate lightly all day because we knew we wanted to order one of everything. We started with bruschetta and the tomatoes were so fresh, the oil was so tasty, and the bread was perfect.

We also had the Rocco pizza cones, with 12-month Grana Padano DOP fondue, pecorino cheese, Piennolo del Vesuvio DOP tomatoes, dried Casertano pork sausage, chili pepper, pecorino chips, basil. They were incredible. I think it was the first time The Husband truly understood what I meant when I said a dish brought tears to my eyes.

The Husband ordered the signature La Margherita Sbagliata, cooked with EVO oil and Campana DOP Buffalo mozzarella. After cooking, the pizza is topped with purée of Riccio tomatoes and basil reduction. They call this a simple pizza on the menu, but it explodes with flavor. You can tell just how fresh everything is, from the dough to the local tomatoes.

I ordered the La Ritrovata, which ended up being my favorite pizza of the entire 8 month trip! This pizza is my Roman Empire, it lives rent free in my mind, and every other trendy way to say I think about this pizza every single day. I don’t have the words to describe this pizza with the respect it deserves, so here’s what their menu says:

So not only is it delicious, it’s basically a health food. But seriously, it was so perfectly balanced and taught me that I don’t need cheese on a pizza for it to be incredibly flavorful.

We couldn’t end the meal without getting dessert, so we ordered the Gelsomina dessert pizza. It was a fried pizza slice with custard, mulberry syrup, butter, violet crystals, citrus zest and icing sugar. And it was dessert perfection.

If all that wasn’t great enough, there was a small party in the back of the restaurant for Pizza Hub, which is a journey to discover the territory inspired by Franco Pepe’s pizza. All the local artisans who are part of Pepe in Grani were there, including Franco himself!

We finished dinner right after he finished with the party, and he stopped by our table and took us into the kitchen! We only had few minutes with him, but he was so nice. The Husband told him, in broken Italian, that his pizza was the best pizza he’d ever had and Franco pinched his cheeks! Anywhere else it would seem a little strange but it was so endearing. Franco also took my phone and took selfies with us right in the kitchen!